Swans lack quality with Sigurdsson deal close
PAUL CLEMENT revealed that Gylfi Sigurdsson is now ‘not far away’ from a £50million move to Everton after a goalless stalemate at Southampton that sorely lacked the star quality of Swansea City’s talisman.
The Welsh club have excluded Sigurdsson from their plans while waiting for a deal to go through and although a fee is yet to be agreed, their manager says it is getting ‘closer’.
Clement’s side engineered a draw at St Mary’s in which the driving forces of Sigurdsson and Southampton’s want-away outcast, captain Virgil van Dijk, were clearly missed.
‘Nothing’s going to be certain until the situation with Sigurdsson is certain,’ Clement said. ‘The clubs have not agreed so there’s a difference in opinion on the value of the player but I don’t think it’s far away. I get the sense it’s closer.’
Southampton, meanwhile, are still adamant they will not sell Van Dijk and Mauricio Pellegrino expects the Dutchman back at training ‘soon’.
In the absence of the two stars, these two teams shut each other out. Clement thought his team deserved to win — before revealing that comment was a joke.
For it was Southampton who created chance after chance, only to fail to find the cutting edge to finish. New boss Pellegrino extended a home record without a goal to 545 minutes.
Saints could have scored twice in the first four minutes when Ryan Bertrand set up Manolo Gabbiadini for a header against the bar and then Dusan Tadic for a horror miss with what should have been a tap-in six yards out. Lukasz Fabianski saved well from James Ward-Prowse but otherwise Southampton were struggling to get shots on goal for all the initiative they had taken. Maya Yoshida twice went close and substitute Charlie Austin hit the side-netting in stoppage time.
At the other end, Swansea’s Chelsea loanee debutant, Tammy Abraham, was largely isolated — although he perhaps should have scored with a first-half header and then worked well for a chance after the break which was blocked.
When the young striker was withdrawn for defender Kyle Bartley nine minutes from the end, the travelling fans booed Clement’s call.
Perhaps, on an afternoon of no goals when they were denied a viewing of the two star men, they felt short-changed. Of Sigurdsson and Van Dijk’s absences, Pellegrino added: ‘It’s a pity — the people deserve to see the best players on the pitch.’
SOUTHAMPTON (3-5-2): Forster 6; Cedric 7, Stephens 7, Yoshida 6, Bertrand 7.5 (McQueen 86); Davis 6, Romeu 6; WardProwse 7 (Boufal 71, 6), Tadic 6.5, Redmond 6.5, Gabbiadini 6 (Austin 69, 6). Subs (not used): Taylor, Long Bednarek, Lemina. Booked: Redmond, Romeu.
SWANSEA (4-3-2-1): Fabianski 7; Naughton 6, Fernandez 7, Mawson 6.5, Olsson 6.5; Britton 6 (Fulton 74, 6), Fer 7, Carroll 6; Routledge 5.5 (McBurnie 86), Ayew 6; Abraham 7 (Bartley 81). Subs (not used): Nordfeldt, Narsingh, Rangel, Mesa. Booked: Fulton. Referee: Mike Jones 6.